Today I celebrate 100 days with my boyfriend. Yeah! That's a record for me. In the past I haven't been good at the long term relationship thing so this is a big step. No, I'm not making any announcements; we're just taking it one day at a time and enjoying the moments. He's a great guy and makes life an adventure. For instance...on our second date, he took me up American Fork Canyon late at night, stopped by the reservoir, pulled out an inflatable kayak, and we went kayaking under the stars at midnight. It was fantastic! Dating is fun! :)
I only write this post as part of my explanation for my disappearance on this blog. Not that anyone reads it but just in case :)
Other updates on my life include a new job and grad school. This summer I started the Technical Writing Master's program at Utah State University and began a new job at another network marketing company as a project manager for the Marketing Communications department.
So, between school, work, boyfriend, working at the temple and my calling in the RS pres, my life is nuts! Hence the lack of posts. I'm not promising more either. I should be doing homework at this very moment. Talk to you sometime!... ;)
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
Another Year and we haven't forgotten
I'm resurrecting this from last year:
Remember
It has been eight years and how quickly it passed. Everyone has a story and remembers where they were on that fateful Tuesday morning. I have my own personal memories that, eight years later, are still not written down. This is for me and my future family, so that we do not forget.
The fall of 2001 found me living a dream. I had visited Washington D.C. as a senior in high school and it had changed me. I fell in love with the city- it called to me- and I knew that one day I would live there. That “one day” came while I was a junior at the University of Utah when I was offered an internship with a media production company called Global Village Communications in Alexandria, VA. It was a season in my life that still affects me to this day. My eyes were opened to a new world and a new me, and I was happy.
My commute to work each morning involved taking the metro and then walking about a half a mile to the office. At one point in the trek, I went up a hill, turned a corner and was welcomed by the sight of the Capital and Washington Monument. The morning of September 11, I distinctly remember turning the corner to that incredible view and feeling an intense feeling that something was wrong. I paused and said a prayer that everything would be ok with my family. Then I entered the office and began my normal day.
We were interviewing a high school tennis player for a video and he had just arrived. Not too long after, a co-worker called, frantic, and started describing an airplane and towers and I didn’t know what else. I couldn’t make sense of what she was saying so she finally said “just turn on the t.v.” We did and immediately understood. We watched in awe with the rest of the world as the smoke swelled from the buildings. Soon they started announcing that the Pentagon had been hit. Sure enough, we opened the blinds on the second floor of our office to a screen of billowing thick, black smoke. Our office was about 2 miles from the Pentagon- close enough that a few hours later we heard and felt an after explosion (or something, we’re not sure what) shake our building and draw all the neighboring workers into the street in curiosity. We stood in the road together, staring into the black cloud, in shock and disbelief at what was occurring.
At word that the Pentagon was hit, our camera crew took off to get some footage, leaving me alone in the office with an anxious tennis player whose parents were both in the White House at the time. He had no way of reaching them or learning of their condition. At the time, rumor was spreading that another plane was headed toward the Capital so we were all on pins and needles. I emailed my dad for a bit and let him know I was fine. (Later that night I received many phone calls from frantic people back in Utah wanting to make sure I was alive. I didn’t realize how panicked they must have been. I knew that the damage was isolated and that I was a safe distance away but all they knew was that I was in a target city).
We spent the rest of the day trying to reach his parents and watching the t.v. along with the rest of the world. By that time, the towers had collapsed, but we continued to tune in for hopes of more information or to find out that this was all just a dream- or nightmare.
I didn’t realize the grandeur of it all until my roommate called. She had been alone in her office on Capital Hill and was surprised by a soldier knocking at her door. They evacuated the entire capital and she was forced onto the metro, then onto a bus around the Pentagon, then back onto the metro, arriving home hours later. She said that Salt Lake was calling to make sure we were all accounted for and she informed me that I was the only one of the 30+ interns still at work. That’s when it hit me how bad this really was.
I went home and spent some time with my boyfriend and on the phone with friends and family from back home as we tried to grasp it all and predict the future implications of the event.
The next day the world was changed. I remember stepping into the metro Wednesday morning to a thick feeling of sorrow. It was nearly tangible- and silent. For a long time the Pentagon metro stop was closed, but after a while it was reopened to individuals with I.D. only. You knew that everyone who got on or off at the stop had been there at the time of the attack.
That night, September 12, I went to a prayer/candlelight vigil at the Capital. All the Senators held a memorial inside while hundreds of us honored outside at the Reflecting Pool. We lit candles and sang patriotic songs. A few of the firemen who had battled the blaze at the Pentagon were there and they had, draped over their fire truck, a flag that had flown at the Pentagon at the time of the attack. It was a humbling experience to be there and participate in that. I was grateful to be close and to be able to take part with hundreds of other strangers as we connected in feelings of sorrow, hope, patriotism and gratitude.
I attended another such prayer vigil at the Lincoln Memorial the following Friday night.
That Friday brought with it a small miracle. It was a day designated by President Bush to commemorate the victims. At noon he asked that the nation pause in a moment of silence. The day had been a gloomy one and started out with rain. Our film crew had gone to the Pentagon to get footage but had forgotten some pieces of camera equipment. Two co-workers and I headed out to bring the materials to them. At the appointed 12 o’clock, we pulled over to the side of the road to observe the moment of silence. Our car was facing the direction of the Pentagon but we could not see the actual building from where we were. We looked up into the sky toward where the Pentagon was and saw the most incredible thing. The clouds and gray sky parted and the sun shone brightly through- just in that one spot. It was truly amazing. My co-worker called a radio station to let them know, through her tears, what we had just witnessed. It was such a remarkable moment of hope.
There were so many other instances of hope and goodness that came from the experience, despite all the horror. Growing up, I had often reflected on how the characters in the Book of Mormon were able to recognize the hand of the Lord in disasters and trials and they were consequently humbled and turned to the Lord. In all my life I had not seen that happened and wondered why disasters in our day did not have the same affect. This one did. For the first time I witnessed that very phenomenon as people turned to God and were suddenly not afraid to shamelessly declare their love for, and reliance on, Him.
I was grateful for the time that I had in D.C. We visited NYC 11 days later and witnessed for ourselves Ground Zero and the devastating effects the attacks had had there. We saw the buildings covered in ash and visited the church that housed so many people during the frightening first few days. But I also saw the resiliency of the cities and the people there. I attended a press conference in the Washington National Airport as they addressed new security measures. I witnessed the reopening of the airport weeks later and panicked a bit as it looked like the planes were again flying right into the ground as the airport is in the middle of the city. D.C. continued to experience difficulties- a tornado, Anthrax scare, and plenty of uncertainty- but it was an exciting place to be at the same time. It was life changing for me to participate in a great change in our nation and to be so close to all that was occurring.
Remember
It has been eight years and how quickly it passed. Everyone has a story and remembers where they were on that fateful Tuesday morning. I have my own personal memories that, eight years later, are still not written down. This is for me and my future family, so that we do not forget.
The fall of 2001 found me living a dream. I had visited Washington D.C. as a senior in high school and it had changed me. I fell in love with the city- it called to me- and I knew that one day I would live there. That “one day” came while I was a junior at the University of Utah when I was offered an internship with a media production company called Global Village Communications in Alexandria, VA. It was a season in my life that still affects me to this day. My eyes were opened to a new world and a new me, and I was happy.
My commute to work each morning involved taking the metro and then walking about a half a mile to the office. At one point in the trek, I went up a hill, turned a corner and was welcomed by the sight of the Capital and Washington Monument. The morning of September 11, I distinctly remember turning the corner to that incredible view and feeling an intense feeling that something was wrong. I paused and said a prayer that everything would be ok with my family. Then I entered the office and began my normal day.
We were interviewing a high school tennis player for a video and he had just arrived. Not too long after, a co-worker called, frantic, and started describing an airplane and towers and I didn’t know what else. I couldn’t make sense of what she was saying so she finally said “just turn on the t.v.” We did and immediately understood. We watched in awe with the rest of the world as the smoke swelled from the buildings. Soon they started announcing that the Pentagon had been hit. Sure enough, we opened the blinds on the second floor of our office to a screen of billowing thick, black smoke. Our office was about 2 miles from the Pentagon- close enough that a few hours later we heard and felt an after explosion (or something, we’re not sure what) shake our building and draw all the neighboring workers into the street in curiosity. We stood in the road together, staring into the black cloud, in shock and disbelief at what was occurring.
At word that the Pentagon was hit, our camera crew took off to get some footage, leaving me alone in the office with an anxious tennis player whose parents were both in the White House at the time. He had no way of reaching them or learning of their condition. At the time, rumor was spreading that another plane was headed toward the Capital so we were all on pins and needles. I emailed my dad for a bit and let him know I was fine. (Later that night I received many phone calls from frantic people back in Utah wanting to make sure I was alive. I didn’t realize how panicked they must have been. I knew that the damage was isolated and that I was a safe distance away but all they knew was that I was in a target city).
We spent the rest of the day trying to reach his parents and watching the t.v. along with the rest of the world. By that time, the towers had collapsed, but we continued to tune in for hopes of more information or to find out that this was all just a dream- or nightmare.
I didn’t realize the grandeur of it all until my roommate called. She had been alone in her office on Capital Hill and was surprised by a soldier knocking at her door. They evacuated the entire capital and she was forced onto the metro, then onto a bus around the Pentagon, then back onto the metro, arriving home hours later. She said that Salt Lake was calling to make sure we were all accounted for and she informed me that I was the only one of the 30+ interns still at work. That’s when it hit me how bad this really was.
I went home and spent some time with my boyfriend and on the phone with friends and family from back home as we tried to grasp it all and predict the future implications of the event.
The next day the world was changed. I remember stepping into the metro Wednesday morning to a thick feeling of sorrow. It was nearly tangible- and silent. For a long time the Pentagon metro stop was closed, but after a while it was reopened to individuals with I.D. only. You knew that everyone who got on or off at the stop had been there at the time of the attack.
That night, September 12, I went to a prayer/candlelight vigil at the Capital. All the Senators held a memorial inside while hundreds of us honored outside at the Reflecting Pool. We lit candles and sang patriotic songs. A few of the firemen who had battled the blaze at the Pentagon were there and they had, draped over their fire truck, a flag that had flown at the Pentagon at the time of the attack. It was a humbling experience to be there and participate in that. I was grateful to be close and to be able to take part with hundreds of other strangers as we connected in feelings of sorrow, hope, patriotism and gratitude.
I attended another such prayer vigil at the Lincoln Memorial the following Friday night.
That Friday brought with it a small miracle. It was a day designated by President Bush to commemorate the victims. At noon he asked that the nation pause in a moment of silence. The day had been a gloomy one and started out with rain. Our film crew had gone to the Pentagon to get footage but had forgotten some pieces of camera equipment. Two co-workers and I headed out to bring the materials to them. At the appointed 12 o’clock, we pulled over to the side of the road to observe the moment of silence. Our car was facing the direction of the Pentagon but we could not see the actual building from where we were. We looked up into the sky toward where the Pentagon was and saw the most incredible thing. The clouds and gray sky parted and the sun shone brightly through- just in that one spot. It was truly amazing. My co-worker called a radio station to let them know, through her tears, what we had just witnessed. It was such a remarkable moment of hope.
There were so many other instances of hope and goodness that came from the experience, despite all the horror. Growing up, I had often reflected on how the characters in the Book of Mormon were able to recognize the hand of the Lord in disasters and trials and they were consequently humbled and turned to the Lord. In all my life I had not seen that happened and wondered why disasters in our day did not have the same affect. This one did. For the first time I witnessed that very phenomenon as people turned to God and were suddenly not afraid to shamelessly declare their love for, and reliance on, Him.
I was grateful for the time that I had in D.C. We visited NYC 11 days later and witnessed for ourselves Ground Zero and the devastating effects the attacks had had there. We saw the buildings covered in ash and visited the church that housed so many people during the frightening first few days. But I also saw the resiliency of the cities and the people there. I attended a press conference in the Washington National Airport as they addressed new security measures. I witnessed the reopening of the airport weeks later and panicked a bit as it looked like the planes were again flying right into the ground as the airport is in the middle of the city. D.C. continued to experience difficulties- a tornado, Anthrax scare, and plenty of uncertainty- but it was an exciting place to be at the same time. It was life changing for me to participate in a great change in our nation and to be so close to all that was occurring.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Friday, April 10, 2009
Woes of Dating...but life is good :)
Two things have been on my mind lately. In reality, they are quite contradictory but regardless, it is my life at the moment.
The first is the Woes of Dating. I recognize that I live a pretty good life and I am so grateful (see next section) but there are times when I would like to just MOVE ON! Single life is great but, naturally, I am drawn to want to find that special someone to love me forever. Who doesn’t want that, really? :) And so, I continue to subject myself to endless dates (most of which are fun) and social activities (nothing wrong with playing hard while I’m looking) in hopes of finding ‘the one’ and have gotten stuck on an emotional roller coaster to which the conductor keeps pressing ‘GO’ and won’t let me off. If this continues I might get sick :)
So I put out the call (via Facebook, mind you. Probably not the smartest move as it resulted in more dating woes, but it was entertaining none the less):
Katie Barton has a job opening for Boyfriend. Applications available.
The position is part-time with the option to become full-time and permanent depending on the execution of the new hire in performing the job requirements. Qualifications include, but are not limited to: independent guy with good sense of humor, loyal, caring, generous, intelligent, and ambitious. Must be adventurous and show genuine interest in spending time with me. Hot pursuit and benefaction will most likely be necessary to win me over. Musicians, dancers, travelers and fans of the outdoors encouraged to apply! Extra points given for University of Utah football fans. MAY, just may, consider a fan of the other school if the candidate is exceptional in all other qualifications. Good conversationalist also a must. Nice eyes are an additional bonus. Excellent benefits package once the probationary period has been met.
I will be utilizing a more stringent application and interview process in an effort to avoid dismissive and unqualified applicants. Will consider a referral bonus for help in locating the ideal candidate.
The position is still open so if you, or anyone you know who fits the qualifications and job description, are on the job hunt, head my way. :)
(Hey...everyone needs a good laugh every now and then, right!) :)
The only thing on my mind is gratitude. While I would love to move past this point in my life, I know that I have been so extremely blessed beyond words and that my life is pretty darn good! I have learned some great lessons in the past few days from General Conference, the temple, and experiences. Here are a few:
Fears can be overcome and most often have no merit.
Greater appreciation for the Savior and His life of service
That I need humbling
I can not be so quick to assume or to judge
The Lord is in charge and I need to let Him be
You never know what people are dealing with or have been through
Family is so important
Everything testifies of the Savior, even our very lives
We are given everything we need to get through anything that will be thrown at us
Loving shouldn’t happen because of pity or charity. We need to learn to give our whole hearts in love for others because we genuinely care
Not everyone lives or thinks like I do (shocking, I know) :)
This is a sampling... there are more too personal to mention. I can not begin to express how grateful I am right now for all my blessings and mostly to the Savior for all that He is and does. I’ve loved this Easter week to spend extra time thinking about His final moments on this earth. He was teaching, loving and healing until the very end and there is so much to learn from pondering this sacred week. I am grateful that He has taken the time to teach me and share life changing insights, especially in the temple.
This month marks a year since I began as a temple worker at the Mt. Timpanogos Temple. I love it! These past few weeks, especially, my shifts have been incredibly spiritual for me and the Lord is truly instructing me. I am grateful for the chance to serve and connect to the patrons who visit the temple and I am grateful for their service. This is a great work!
This is what the temple looks like as I leave my shift.
The first is the Woes of Dating. I recognize that I live a pretty good life and I am so grateful (see next section) but there are times when I would like to just MOVE ON! Single life is great but, naturally, I am drawn to want to find that special someone to love me forever. Who doesn’t want that, really? :) And so, I continue to subject myself to endless dates (most of which are fun) and social activities (nothing wrong with playing hard while I’m looking) in hopes of finding ‘the one’ and have gotten stuck on an emotional roller coaster to which the conductor keeps pressing ‘GO’ and won’t let me off. If this continues I might get sick :)
So I put out the call (via Facebook, mind you. Probably not the smartest move as it resulted in more dating woes, but it was entertaining none the less):
Katie Barton has a job opening for Boyfriend. Applications available.
The position is part-time with the option to become full-time and permanent depending on the execution of the new hire in performing the job requirements. Qualifications include, but are not limited to: independent guy with good sense of humor, loyal, caring, generous, intelligent, and ambitious. Must be adventurous and show genuine interest in spending time with me. Hot pursuit and benefaction will most likely be necessary to win me over. Musicians, dancers, travelers and fans of the outdoors encouraged to apply! Extra points given for University of Utah football fans. MAY, just may, consider a fan of the other school if the candidate is exceptional in all other qualifications. Good conversationalist also a must. Nice eyes are an additional bonus. Excellent benefits package once the probationary period has been met.
I will be utilizing a more stringent application and interview process in an effort to avoid dismissive and unqualified applicants. Will consider a referral bonus for help in locating the ideal candidate.
The position is still open so if you, or anyone you know who fits the qualifications and job description, are on the job hunt, head my way. :)
(Hey...everyone needs a good laugh every now and then, right!) :)
The only thing on my mind is gratitude. While I would love to move past this point in my life, I know that I have been so extremely blessed beyond words and that my life is pretty darn good! I have learned some great lessons in the past few days from General Conference, the temple, and experiences. Here are a few:
Fears can be overcome and most often have no merit.
Greater appreciation for the Savior and His life of service
That I need humbling
I can not be so quick to assume or to judge
The Lord is in charge and I need to let Him be
You never know what people are dealing with or have been through
Family is so important
Everything testifies of the Savior, even our very lives
We are given everything we need to get through anything that will be thrown at us
Loving shouldn’t happen because of pity or charity. We need to learn to give our whole hearts in love for others because we genuinely care
Not everyone lives or thinks like I do (shocking, I know) :)
This is a sampling... there are more too personal to mention. I can not begin to express how grateful I am right now for all my blessings and mostly to the Savior for all that He is and does. I’ve loved this Easter week to spend extra time thinking about His final moments on this earth. He was teaching, loving and healing until the very end and there is so much to learn from pondering this sacred week. I am grateful that He has taken the time to teach me and share life changing insights, especially in the temple.
This month marks a year since I began as a temple worker at the Mt. Timpanogos Temple. I love it! These past few weeks, especially, my shifts have been incredibly spiritual for me and the Lord is truly instructing me. I am grateful for the chance to serve and connect to the patrons who visit the temple and I am grateful for their service. This is a great work!
This is what the temple looks like as I leave my shift.
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